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COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) Barry Odom has filled a sudden vacancy at quarterback and Missouri's new coach said on-campus turmoil was no factor in assembling his first recruiting class.
The Tigers had an opening behind freshman Drew Lock when Maty Mauk was dismissed in late January. They filled it on Wednesday by signing Micah Wilson, a promising quarterback from Tulsa, Oklahoma.
''We addressed some immediate needs that we have to address,'' Odom said Wednesday. ''(Quarterback) jumped up to the most important thing we did.''
Odom said he had ''absolutely'' no regrets about restoring Mauk to the roster in late December but said ''unfortunately, he wasn't able'' to live up to standards set at the meeting with the coach.
Mauk was kicked off the team two days after a video was posted on Twitter showing a person appearing to snort a white, powder-like substance. The tweet mentioned Mauk by name.
Mauk had other missteps and was dismissed despite going 17-5 as the starter. Missouri's offense was among the worst in the nation with and without him last year, scoring in single digits five times in the final seven games with Lock starting.
''I wish him all the best,'' Odom said. ''I want him to graduate from the University of Missouri. He's going to have that opportunity.''
Another quarterback, backup Eddie Printz, decided to transfer.
Wilson is 6-foot-3 and 205 pounds and switched commitments from Boise State. He was a first-team all-stater by four major Oklahoma newspapers.
Odom and assistants said they didn't lose any recruits wary of Missouri after campus protests in November that included a brief strike by football players who had threatened a game at BYU. The school backed the players.
''Columbia is not any different than anywhere else,'' Odom said. ''I'm about dealing in truth and really painted the picture for what this place is. The quote unquote issues that were on our campus, that's something that's not different from our society as a whole.''
Odom addressed two other areas of need with his first recruiting class, added a pair of highly touted running backs and two experienced wide receivers.
One of the running backs, Damarea Crockett, of Little Rock, Arkansas, who went to Little Rock Christian, is a four-star recruit. The other, Nate Strong, was a four-star recruit coming out of East St. Louis, Illinois, High School and played last year for Hinds Community College. Wide receiver Chris Black is a graduate transfer from Alabama who can play right away and Dominic Collins is from Saddleback Community College.
J'Mon Moore was the top wide receiver last year with 29 receptions and Nate Brown had 27.
Ish Witter, who will be a junior, had a team-leading 518 yards rushing and a 4.1-yard average with one touchdown. Senior Russell Hansbrough battled injuries and had 436 yards and one touchdown.
Other things to know:
Top 25 Class: No
Best in class: Tre Williams, DL, Columbia, Missouri, Rock Bridge. Four recruits are among the St. Louis Post-Dispatch top 30 list - TE Brendan Scales, P-K Tucker McCann, OL Tre'Vour Simms and RB Jerod Alton.
Best of the rest: Christian Holmes, CB, Atlanta, Georgia., McNair High
Late addition: Scales changed commitment from Alabama.
One that got away: None.
How they'll fit in: Odom was under the gun to produce after replacing Pinkel in early December. It's not a wow class but it should help the school regain its footing in the SEC.
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For the full list: http://www.mutigers.com/
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This story has been corrected to show that Damarea Crockett, of Little Rock, Arkansas, went to Little Rock Christian, not East St. Louis, Illinois, High School.
